Themes: architectural, community development

This property was purchased by Elizabeth Punchard (Abbott) Pratt on March 1, 1877, from the estate of William Phillips Foster of 96 Central St. (now 2 Abbott Bridge Rd.) executors John Abbott and Joseph Kimball. Elizabeth was one of three children born to Hartwell B. & Sara (Jones) Abbott. Her father Hartwell was born in the old Benjamin Abbott homestead at 9 Andover St. on June 24, 1816. He married on November 14, 1855, at age 39 to Sarah Abbott Jones, b. Nov. 5, 1817, age 36, daughter of Jewett & Susan Jones. Their children; Elizabeth Punchard b. Aug. 31, 1857, James Jewett b. April 6, 1859, and Mary Alice b. June 15, 1860. were born at 3 Andover St. in the new farmhouse built by their father.

Elizabeth P. Abbott graduated from Punchard Free School in 1872, married Thomas Franklin (Frank) Pratt on Oct. 25, 1876. T. Frank was born Nov. 16, 1847, in Medford, MA, son of Thomas Wait Pratt a housewright and Laura Pullen. Frank Pratt was a banker and assistant cashier for Old Boston National Bank. Elizabeth also acquired the river meadow lot from her father Hartwell of 1 acre 99 rods on July 22, 1878, which abutted the house lot. Lupine Rd. had not yet been extended to Central St. The road was established about 1882 and was first called Rail Road Street running parallel to the Boston & Maine Railroad tracks.

The combined properties were once part of the Foster and Abbott farms. Elizabeth's lot now extended down to the Shawsheen River.
Elizabeth and Thomas Frank had three children Malcolm P. b. Nov. 1879 d. Feb. 1883, Stanley A. b. Feb. 1882 - d. Sept. 1937, and Sarah H. b. Sept. 1885. Thomas Frank Pratt died at age 61 years of cerebral degeneration on Nov. 25, 1908. Elizabeth, her family and Hartwell B. Abbott sold a portion of their land on Reservation and Red Spring Rd. to Alice Buck and committee in Dec. 1897, to create the Indian Ridge Reservation now an AVIS property. Pratt had also acquired a third parcel of land uphill from her home which would later be developed by Alex Henderson as Henderson and Marion Avenues.

Elizabeth sold two lots behind the house to Horace Hale Smith C.E., on Lupine Rd. in Aug. 1910. Hale built his stucco home and then built a boat house next door. The parcel between the river and Lupine Rd held a boat house for the Andover Canoe Club and a launch. Elizabeth continued to reside in the house with her daughter Sarah who became a schoolteacher. Elizabeth took a mortgage from the Andover Savings Bank in 1926. Elizabeth died on Jan. 15, 1934, at age 77. The Pratt family are interred at Spring Grove Cemetery. The loan defaulted in 1938, and the Andover Savings Bank took possession on Dec. 23, 1938.

The bank held the property for nine years then sold to Albert L. & Jennie Kerr on Apr. 26, 1947. Albert died March 24, 1958 and widow Jennie then sold 3 parcels to George M. & Mary S. Stewart on Aug. 22, 1958.

John C. & E. Carol Fisher then purchased the property on June 23, 1960. Carol Fisher died on Sept. 22, 1968. John remarried to Samia K. and the deed was placed in both their names in May 1969. The Fishers sold their river lot of .693 acres to AVIS on Dec. 30, 1969, which is now part of the Lupine Reservation.
In Sept. 1972 Fisher sold the house parcel to Joseph J. & Phylis E. Herskovits Joseph J. died on July 24, 2009. The property is now in the Phylis E. Herskovits 2011 Revocable Trust.